10/28/21 – Episode 4
Before Firebrand, Chris Marks founded his own firm Blue Note Ventures that invested early stage in technology startups with authentic founders. After meeting his partner John Fein at Techstars, the two merged funds and are operating as Firebrand Ventures, John’s first fund. In today’s episode, Chris and Emily discuss what it’s been like merging VC firms, how a Techstars connection brought them together, and why Austin, Texas is the next big place for venture.
About Chris Marks:
Chris Marks is originally from Chicago, but came to Colorado for both his undergrad in Political Science at Colorado College and then again for his JD at the University of Colorado Boulder after some time in Washington DC. He was a practicing lawyer for just over two years, then took a turn into investing. He founded his own firm, Blue Note Ventures, before merging with John Fein’s Firebrand Ventures.
In this episode with Chris, you’ll learn:
- How Chris got into venture capital
- Why he started his own venture firm
- Chris’ experience merging venture funds
- Firebrand Ventures’ investment thesis
- Why they expanded to Austin, Texas
- Red lights and green lights in a pitch deck
- Chris’ advice for entrepreneurs and investors
- Chris’ definition of success
Mentioned in this episode…
Companies:
Firebrand Ventures
Aadya
Capital Factory
Techstars
MergeLane
People:
Chris Marks
John Fein
Claire Hansen
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